Perdue wants NC refund delays to stop

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RALEIGH, N.C. — North Carolina residents won't have to wait for months to get their tax refunds this year if Gov. Beverly Perdue gets her way.

Perdue spokeswoman Chrissy Pearson said Tuesday that the governor has told Revenue Secretary David Hoyle and Budget Director Charlie Perusse to find a way to pay refunds to individual tax filers within 30 to 45 days of receiving their returns.

The Revenue Department took heat in 2009 and 2010 for delaying refund payments because the poor economy was making cash tight in government coffers.

"It's important to get this money that's owed to them back as quickly as they've had to pay the state," Hoyle said. "I think it would be good for the economy to put money back into people's hands at a time they probably need their refunds more than ever, and we're going to do that."

Hoyle and Perusse are working on a way to meet Perdue's timeline.

One option is short-term borrowing so the state can cover bills and still repay taxpayers. Borrowing would cost less than the interest the state pays on overdue refunds, officials said.

dlk13sterJan 5, 2011

And like the 16th Amendment, that was a BIPARTISAN endeavor that was YEARS in the making...

sorrowchaserJan 5, 2011

Yeah it sure helped us avoid going into debt.

dlk13sterJan 5, 2011

"returned in full force when progressives needed more money in 1913"-sorrowchaser.

Actually, Pres. Taft (who signed the bill) was a Rep., which was even then a predom. conservative party. He did however, consider himself a progressive, and carefully tried to drum up BIPARTISAN support for the Amendment.

Eventually, he succeeded, passing in 384 to 14 in the House, and equally fast in the states, because even conservatives realized the value it had in increasing Federal revenue and helping the gov. to avoid going further into debt (even though Fed. debt was only ~$0.046T, adj. for 2010 $'s). This then allowed them to justify lowing the trade tariff in the Revenue Act of 1913, which many believed was REALLY stifling economic growth at the time--an ultimately futile gesture since WWI rendered fears about international protectionism utterly moot.

But I agree; tax accountability cuts both ways, into private AND public sectors. It IS "our money;" so we should take care of it accordingly.

sorrowchaserJan 5, 2011

In fairness re: federal income tax, we didn't have one until Congress imposed it to pay for the Civil War. It went away for a while after the war but then returned in full force when progressives needed more money in 1913. It started out being 3% of someone's income. Now it's more like 25%.

As for whose fault it is that refunds are due, I see both sides. Yes citizens can do a better job of tracking it, but I shouldn't have to become a finance expert just to accommodate the government's ability to seize my income more efficiently. And even when you calculate initial holdings just right, having a lot of deductions, unexpected inheritances, refinanced student loan interest, etc, can throw you off.

Bottom line, if we're paying NC to administer these things, they should do a better job of being prompt. A business owner can't get away with delaying paychecks even if they do say they'll pay interest.

ArapaloosaJan 5, 2011

If they didn't take it, they wouldn't have to give it back!

dlk13sterJan 5, 2011

"The witholding is your error not theirs."-superman

I agree, wholeheartedly. Unfortunately, arguments about "fiscal responsibility" in this country always seem to entail increasing SOMEONE ELSE'S "responsibility."

Still, I can understand people's frustration; the tax code is so opaque and arcane that people go to school for YEARS before the fully understand a half of it.

I recently had an argument with someone who insisted that Article I, Section 2, Clause 3 of the Constitution only applied to taxes "upon the states," and that the gov. therefore had no right to tax individuals' incomes at all. (Despite the 16th Amendment explicitly stating the complete opposite).

Granted, that was about the FEDERAL income tax, but if people can't be bothered to read/understand the Constitution, who has the time to read the NC General Statues regarding State Tax Law?

ctyaJan 5, 2011

TooMuchDrama

what could Lay have done. It inherited that mess.

supermanJan 5, 2011

If you normally get a refund-- it is a simple matter to change your withholding. It is the taxpayers fault if they are withholding too much from your check-- not the states fault. If you have ever worked in a finance or business office for a company-- you realize how important and critical the cash flow is. You may even experience this at home with your finances. Change the withholding and stop crying about your refund! My state witholding was so accurate last year that I only had to pay an additional $14.00. The witholding is your error not theirs.

ArapaloosaJan 5, 2011

I have an idea... let's get rid of state income tax!

earliegraceJan 4, 2011

Keep in mind that you have a due date and "they" have a due date. If they don't get your refund to you 45 days after the April 15th date, then they owe you interest. Just because you file early doesn't give you the right to start demanding you get your refund early. So shut up complaining and change the amount being withheld from your check each month like the rest of us.